Roberts receives tech ‘trailblazer’ award

Photo provided Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. Superintendent Jim Roberts receives the Candice Dodson Indiana EdTech Trailblazer Award from William Stein, director of information systems at MSD of Mt. Vernon (Evansville), who chairs the Indiana Chief Technology Officer Council.

Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.’s superintendent has been honored for encouraging technological innovation in education.

Jim Roberts received the Candice Dodson Indiana EdTech Trailblazer Award during the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents’ annual meeting in Indianapolis.

According to BCSC officials, the award is presented both by the IAPSS and the Indiana Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Council and honors a Hoosier superintendent or assistant superintendent “who has promoted and supported innovative uses of technology in their district and helped others do the same.”

Candice Dodson served as executive director of the State Educational Technology Directors Association prior to her death in 2020. Dodson had previously served as director of eLearning at the Indiana Department of Education before joining SETDA.

Her career in education also included over 20 years with the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. in roles such as fifth grade teacher, media specialist/teacher, Integrating Curriculum and Technology Specialist, and Director of Core Experiences.

“Candice worked tirelessly to connect colleagues and friends and to help leaders build on their strengths and take risks,” the State Education Technology Directors Association stated in a memorial page for Dodson. “In Indiana and then at SETDA, she positively influenced progressive movement in education policy and practice to support digital learning and recognized that individual leaders were critical to driving that change.”